94 floors, 1,632 steps to glory

We don't have any mountains to climb in Chicago, so the John Hancock building will have to do.

Sunday's Hustle Up the Hancock attracted 3,600 participants. Most climbed to the 94th floor observatory. The rest raced up 42 flights.

Why do it?

To begin with, I ascribe to the "because it's there" philosophy. The physical challenge seemed reason enough to slide out of bed.

The mood in the lobby was lively and competitive as people stretched or chatted with friends. Every few moments runners cheered as they headed for the stairwell to take the first of 1,632 steps to the top.

One athletic-looking man dropped for a dozen pushups and hopped up to a running start.

I jogged the first few flights. The woman in front of me was wise enough to bring a Walkman, I noted jealously.

But several minutes into the race, I was glad not to have the distraction.

What I heard was a percussive melody of breathing and walking. Sharply drawn inhales, steady exhales and the empty thud of feet striking the metal stairs.

Because the participants are released at 10-second intervals, I could see no one ahead or behind me. The whistling wind of labored breathing echoed in the stairwell.

Nothing like a little wheezing of my own to drive home the point.

The Hustle is expected to raise $300,000 for the American Lung Association of Metropolitan Chicago to support lung disease research.

"I know what it's like not to be able to breathe," said Stacy Wagoner, 28, who climbed 42 floors Sunday.

Wagoner suffered childhood asthma from ages 5 to 18. She couldn't really participate in school sports, she said. Even sleepovers were a risk.

"When I was younger, it was scary," she said. "I didn't want to ... be in a situation where I didn't know what to do and my parents weren't around to save me."

Asthma is the leading cause of hospitalization for children in Illinois, according to the Illinois Health Care Cost Containment Council.

After years of medication and other treatment, Wagoner's asthma faded. From time to time she participates in events such as the Hustle to raise money and awareness of lung disease.

Around the 15th floor, I set a regular climbing pace. As my breath grew even, my mind started to wander.

Unlike running or hiking, the Hancock stairwell offered no scenic vistas, just floor after floor of dull, gray cinder block. There is little entertainment unless you like the torture of checking the number on each floor.

Step, step, step, turn. At every other landing, brightly marked fire hoses and fire extinguishers were mounted on the wall.

Alone with my thoughts in a never-ending stairwell, I reflected on firefighters and skyscrapers. For many years to come, the two will be intertwined with memories of Sept. 11.

More than 300 firefighters climbed Sunday in memory of their counterparts who died in the World Trade Center.

Some dressed in all their gear, including boots and helmet. Together it weighs about 80 pounds, one firefighter said.